Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak on this issue. It is fair to say that there has been a lot of misunderstanding and misinformation. The reality is that of all the people who come to the country, people seeking international protection make up a very small number. For example, we give out between 30,000 and 39,000 work permits depending on the year to people outside the EU. Of course, if they did not come here and do the necessary work they are doing, the economy and services in this country would not function. Because we are in the EU, there is free travel here from anybody who is legally resident in the EU. We have a system that is open but subject to checks.

Regarding people coming here seeking international protection, it is fair to say that checks are carried out when they come here unlike the other groups I mentioned, particularly people coming from the EU and Ukraine. My understanding is that there are no checks on people coming from Ukraine. There are checks on people coming here seeking international protection and I understand that there are records and that fingerprints are taken and shared with Eurodac so it is slightly disingenuous to say there are no checks.

Second, what people coming here looking for refugee status or even economic migrants coming here, who are not eligible for refugee status, look for is citizenship. Achieving citizenship could take someone between five, six and nine years and if any infraction of the law of any consequence will disqualify that person from making an application for citizenship. People coming here tend, therefore, to be very careful.

We have pressure on our hospitals and on housing and we should deal with that urgently. Like most TDs, I spend a considerable part of my time pressing these matters as I believe they are hugely important. However, I cannot stand here and say that it is acceptable that people, be they native to this country or people who came in during the past week, are forced to sleep on the streets and are not entitled to a roof over their head. Some people think, "Well, they're only men". As a man, I can guarantee the House that men feel the cold too. I shudder at the thought of having to sleep out in weather like the weather we have at the moment because it is either rainy, windy or freezing cold.

We need a debate. Certain aspects of the system are very frustrating. I was delighted that the Minister said yesterday that the Government was going to speed up the system because, traditionally, the system has been very slow.

Another issue I find frustrating is the fact that I cannot get answers. People come to me, particularly regarding accommodation for Ukrainians, and tell me that they have spare capacity. When I table parliamentary questions, they are referred on and I do not get the required information but get very vague answers about what the occupancy rate is at this time.

I know of one place that is constantly complaining it has empty beds. I have heard no complaint about the place, and I wonder how this could be when we hear all of the time that there is a shortage of accommodation.

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